


May 23rd, 2013

by usoverlooked



Category: Community
Genre: F/M, Gen, finale, my heart hurts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-21
Updated: 2013-01-21
Packaged: 2017-11-26 07:38:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/648155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/usoverlooked/pseuds/usoverlooked
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Do you have any plans? One last college rave to attend?" "I've got a dinner reservation. An old one." /or a Community finale</p>
            </blockquote>





	May 23rd, 2013

**Author's Note:**

  * For [easternepiphany](https://archiveofourown.org/users/easternepiphany/gifts).



> Fair warning, I cried while writing this. I owe Kate a lot because she basically gave me 40% of the ideas for this and I just love her.

Jeff tugs his gown off and lays it across the bed carefully. The sentimental part of him - the part that Britta teases him about - wants to get it framed or hung or just documented in any way. The proof of it, that he, Jeff Winger, tried and fought for something, needs to see the light of day. He thumbs through contacts on his phone as he meanders towards his closet, settling on a number and cradling the phone between his ear and shoulder. His hands paw through the rack of ties, searching for the right one for such a big occasion. The line rings, three times as per usual before she answers.

"Jeffy?" His mother says this too loudly, always a little offput by the idea of cell phones. Jeff's mother is wonderfully predictable in many ways, from her punctuality and technophobia, which Jeff failed to inherit, to the care of those close to her, that Jeff realized recently he did inherit. Jeff pauses before answering, trying to keep the glee from his voice.

"I did it, ma. Your son's a real college graduate." Jeff sounds near giddy, his mother chuckles at the sound. She compliments him, teases him a bit about 'took you long enough' and apologizes for the thousandth time for not being able to make it. As Jeff knots a tie - yellow like the sun or a pretty girl's hair - he brushes off the apology for the thousandth time. His mother was a teacher in Newark and Greendale was just backwards enough to schedule its graduation on a Tuesday. Jeff had accepted back in March that he would be without family for the graduation.

"Do you have any plans? One last college rave to attend?" Jeff can hear a television in the background, a faded sound of theme music - Inspector Spacetime, Jeff had passed along a recommendation from Abed and his mother had taken to it well - spilling through the line. Something in it pains him, the realization that he will have that now. No more madcap Greendale adventures, just court cases and evenings not interrupted by phone calls from Casa Trobednie about a sudden study session set to the backdrop of Star Wars. There is a moment where he's conflicted about this, the loss and gain of it, but it passes as he reassures himself this will all be fine.

"I've got a dinner reservation. An old one," Jeff bids his mother goodbye, promises to call when he hears back about the job offer and picks up his suit jacket.

The drive to the steakhouse is long, because Jeff takes a few purposeful wrong turns. For some reason, the steakhouse seems so final to him. Sure, the graduation ceremony was technically the end of his studentship at Greendale, but the end for him would be this dinner. The ceremony had gone surprisingly well, although the proceedings had to stop for about ten minutes when Dean Pelton burst into tears about 'losing the Greendale Seven' and Jeff and Britta (who attempted to muscle her way into getting the Dean to set up a therapy appointment before Jeff had pulled her away) comforted him. When the final speech was made, given by Jeff himself, he looked out at the crowd and felt proud. Not of the other students, Jeff had no idea who any of them were, but of his study group.

Minus Pierce, who, to the best of anyone's knowledge, was somewhere in the Caribbean, the five others sat in the first row. Abed and Troy's skinny legs (they had come without clothes under their gowns, Annie had explained, frantic that the Dean would be upset about the matter) poked out from their gowns. Troy's face was wet with tears (though before taking the stage, Jeff had heard him murmuring 'I'm not crying, I don't cry") while Abed sat stoically beside him as Annie grasped his hand so tight her knuckles had turned white. The young girl's face was drawn into a misty-eyed grin. Next to her sat Britta who looked up at Jeff with an almost cocky look in her eyes. Like she was challenging him to make her as emotional as those around her (save Abed) but Jeff saw the way she had cleaned the scratches from her boots and the floral arrangements next to the diplomas and knew that she felt as much as any of them. A blank chair, his own, separated Shirley from the others, though Shirley had reached over and gripped onto Britta's hand. Shirley looked beautiful, teary-eyed but smiling at Jeff like she was proud of all of them. For a moment, Jeff had stood there, unable to trust his voice if he opened his mouth. Then he looked down at his cards and cleared his throat. His speech was simple, about the 'uniqueness' of Greendale and its students. 

"Some people say a community college degree doesn't mean much, or that your credits here won't transfer. That's what you heard, however, I wish you luck. " He finished his speech by grinning cheekily up at the group. Abed gave him a thumbs up and several people chuckled. Before Jeff could finish, the Dean stole the microphone and began blathering on about how funny Jeff was and something about sunglasses.

Jeff finally turns into the parking lot of the steakhouse, still reminiscing about the ceremony and Greendale on a whole. Greendale, Jeff decides, is the Charlie Brown Christmas tree. It's dorky and pitiful, but it's not a bad little college. It just needs a little love. Then Jeff realizes how sappy this is and rubs his finger on the bridge of his nose. Damn school made him a teenage girl. When he walks into the steakhouse, he is greeted by a chipper brunette.

"Winger. I have a reservation." He waits as she flips through the book (“Did you call this in... three years ago?” the brunette asks and Jeff nods) and taps his hand against the hostess stand. After a moment, she leads him back.

Jeff walks and remembers the lopsided birthdays the study group had, at places like this as well as greasy spoons and vegan joints (pun intended) that Britta liked. For Annie's 21st, they had ended up at a bed and breakfast in Denver, where they all woke up to racoons pawing through their suitcases. It was funny now, but at the time, the entire group had screamed until Troy accidently knocked his suitcase shut and trapped the raccoon inside. Then Jeff and Pierce (who had still been with them, in fact it was one of the last adventures before he bid them adieu) had felt the need to, as Britta put it, 'prove their penises' and chased the remaining raccoons out. After that they tried to stick to more known places, like Orange Leaf for Britta's cat's birthday (which incidentally fell on the same day as hers, but she refused to celebrate her own so they had to improvise).

"Your table, Mr. Winger," the brunette chirps. Jeff thanks her and takes the menu from her before sitting down. He wonders, almost absently, if he would have managed without the study group.

"I owe them so much," Jeff says aloud, almost without realizing. "Even if I never see them again. Knowing them had me change."

"Finishing up with a dramatic closing monologue?" Abed's voice interrupts Jeff's thoughts. The man is standing with a grin and one hand in a finger gun. Jeff nods and shrugs. "Cool, cool cool cool."

Abed slides into a chair, straightening his silverware once he is seated. He explains that Annie and Troy are parking as Troy drove, but rarely remembers where he parks, thus Annie accompanying him.

"You don't think that'll happen do you? Us not seeing each other again after tonight?" Abed asks and Jeff, still feeling sentimental, wonders how this can be the same guy from that first week who was completely oblivious to anything Jeff felt.

"Of course not. You live with Troy and Annie, Shirley made me and Britta Ben's godparents and Pierce promised to take us all on a cruise. We're sticking together, Abed," Jeff comforts his friend, finishing his statement just as Annie and Troy appear. The pair look much less emotional than at the graduation, Annie in a nice floral dress with no mascara on her cheeks and Troy in a Greendale letterman jacket ("I think the inside is real fur because it's really warm," he had said when he'd gotten the jacket in December. Jeff had commented on Greendale "Britta'ing" making cheap jock jackets.) with a grin on his face. They barely seat themselves (Annie next to Abed, oddly enough, and Troy on Annie's other side) before Shirley barrels into the group.

"Look at you guys, I need pictures, I need lots of pictures!" she cheers. After the group finally weaned Shirley off baking, Britta had gotten her friend into photography which raised a whole new crop of problems. Shirley is still teary-eyed, to the point of her having to wipe runny mascara-ridden tears from the camera screen. As she does so, Britta slips into the seat between Jeff and Abed. The blonde wears a leather jacket over a nicer blouse and a headband.

"I know we said we weren't doing gifts, but I Greendale'd that," Britta says. For about a month now, she has been trying - and failing - to replace "Britta'd" with "Greendale'd". She passes out parcels, smiling almost manically. To Abed, she gives a signed Inspector Spacetime poster ("Whatever, my dad knew a guy, it's not a big deal"), to Shirley a book on Business Tips for Busy Moms, to Troy a pair of tap shoes. Annie tears up when she opens hers.

"Britta, is this one of your leather jackets?" the younger girl asks, holding the item in question against her. Britta nods.

"I figured you could use some badass outerwear when you're riding the bus to the clinic. Besides, you gave me like ten headbands, we're even." Britta brushes the compliment off and Annie starts babbling on about how they need to use Greendale'd instead of Britta'd and works herself into a lather until Abed comfortingly rubs her back. She sniffs into his shoulder.

"Is this a funeral or a celebration?" Pierce's voice booms and everyone turns to look at him. He's sunburnt, a line around his eyes where sunglasses must have been. Annie, of course, bursts into tears again at his appearance and Troy is the one to jump up and hug their old friend.   
After that, conversation comes easily with Pierce telling stories of the island (until Shirley cuts him off when they get too lewd) and the rest of the group updating Pierce on the latest Greendale happenings. They wave their waitress away three times, having not even looked at a menu, before Britta nudges Jeff with her leg. 

"You haven't opened your present," she mentions around a bite of the complimentary bread. The waitress had left it on her last visit and so far only Britta and Troy had managed to extract their attention from the conversation long enough to grab a piece. Jeff almost makes a quip about how he wasn't sure if the present would be appropriate in front of company but Britta's expression is so earnestly hopeful that he stops the remark before it escapes. Instead he peels off the wrapping paper ("You're supposed to rip it," the entire group had bellowed at him on his birthday a year ago and from then on he purposefully opened presents methodically to bother them) and opens the box inside. The present is business cards, nice ones, and Jeff opens his mouth to thank her until she nods at him, encouraging him to read it.

"Jeff Winger, speech giver and public defender." Jeff smiles and Britta grins proudly. "So you heard about the job offer? What if I had turned it down?"

"You won't," Britta crows. She's right, though Jeff refuses to admit it at that moment. Instead he reaches into his suit pocket and pulls out a package. He sets it in front of Britta, who looks at it suspiciously.

"I got Annie a dvd of 13 Going on 30, Shirley some toys for Ben, Abed and Troy some Inspector Spacetime Lego sets and Pierce an invitation to this dinner. It's your turn, hot blonde from Spanish class," Jeff can feel the rest of the group's eyes on the pair. Had it been a year ago, Annie would have pouted or hide her jealousy behind a mouth of bread. Now she beams at him, her head still resting on Abed's shoulder and despite the fact that the pair refuses to comment on it, Jeff is fairly certain of what's happening there. Regardless, he's glad Annie is happy. Troy even seems happy and Jeff remembers him making plans with a girl in their history class to meet up during the summer. 

"Britta Perry..." Britta's voice trails off and if Jeff was a little braver he'd mention that she looked misty-eyed. She clears her throat and starts again, "Britta Perry, psychologist extraordinaire."  
There's a beat and luckily Pierce jumps in with a story about jet skis and Michelle Pfeiffer. Jeff is glad because Britta's chewing on her bottom lip like she wants the ground to swallow her up.

"You ever think about that day back when I kissed you just so you wouldn't fail a class?" she says this slowly, as if she's afraid of what the words mean. Jeff nods and Britta laughs. "I think sometimes that you had it right back then, about us."

"Duh doy," Jeff responds and leans those few inches that have always seemed to separate them and plants his lips on hers. He can hear the rest of the group 'aw' at the sight and he pulls away smiling, as does Britta.

"I told you, I told you," Shirley cheers and Pierce reaches into his pocket. There's money exchanged and Jeff realizes that a bet definitely occurred at some point and inquires as to the details. Troy is the one, oddly enough, who tells the story ("I am impatial!" He shouts when Pierce and Shirley try to talk over him and Annie and Jeff look at each other and chuckle over the miswording) and when he does so, Jeff takes a moment to get Abed's attention.

"Abed," Jeff leans around Britta to his friend, who looks at him sharply. "I see your value you now."

**Author's Note:**

> Basically this is exactly how the finale would play out (only with more humor) if the world was perfect to me. Hope you enjoyed.


End file.
